WMC is Making TAVR Easy

Until recently, local patients in need of a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) had to undergo general anesthesia. Because these patients often were of advanced age or had other health issues, general anesthesia wasn’t always tolerated by all patients, especially because it required a temporary breathing tube to be placed in the patient’s airway.

Now, Westchester Medical Center (WMC) can offer the procedure to suitable patients using only IV sedation and local anesthesia. “There are only a handful of hospitals in the US that do this routinely,” says Gilbert Tang, MD, Director of the Valve Disease Center at WMC. “It really improves patient safety and comfort, and it speeds up recovery time, which can reduce their hospital stay.”

For more on the TAVR procedure using local anesthesia, call WMC’s Valve Program Hotline at (914) 830-1098.